Oral

The five conclusions for this session are as follows: 1.There has been little progress in reducing the reported health status disparities between high SES and low SES respondents in the last four years 2.While there have been improvements in some key measures of healthcare, large disparities remain 3.Adults with basic and complex activity limitations were significantly more likely than persons with neither limitation to be unable to receive or to delay receiving needed medical care, dental care, or prescription medicines 4.Disparities in health status, health conditions and insurance status based on self-reported main racial background are not simply a statistical phenomenon 5.Differences in race/ethnicity were significantly associated with prescription medication use among older adults in the United States

Session Objectives: There are five objectives for this session. To: 1.Describe the self-reported health trends by race, family income, and education 2.Learn from the National Healthcare Disparities Report which healthcare disparities have improved and which have not improved 3.Describe disparities in quality and access to care for adults with disabilities using new disability measures 4.Identify and describe the effect of changing federal policies regarding racial identification on the analysis and measurement of health disparities 5.Understand racial/ethnic disparities in prescription medication use in older adults